Rockhurst Education Students Earn Top-Tier Status

When it comes to preparing for careers, students in the Rockhurst University education department are among the top of the class in the state.

That’s based on new data from the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Earlier this month, DESE released to the public for the first time its Annual Performance Report for the state’s educator preparation programs, evaluating programs across the state between the years 2012 and 2016 on a four-tiered scale. Those evaluations weigh factors such as how well students in those programs perform on content area certification assessments and content GPAs. The new report is part of a multi-year effort by the state agency to capture data and measure how prepared teachers are before they step into the classroom.

Where measured, programs in Rockhurst University’s elementary and secondary education curriculum earned top scores. English grades 9-12, and social science grades 9-12 both had large enough sample sizes to assess students both in the areas of certification assessment pass rates and GPAs in the content area of their certification. And both areas scored in the first tier — those programs that earn between 90 and 100 percent of possible points — for those criteria, earning the top possible scores where eligible. Sample sizes were also large enough for the elementary education grades 1-6 program, which earned top-tier status in the certification assessment pass rates. Content area GPAs are not measured by the state for the APR at the elementary education level.

“We’re excited to share this news,” said Mary Pat Shelledy, Ed.S., chair of the education department. “It reflects the caliber of students who enter the program, and the quality of the instruction they receive from the Rockhurst faculty.”

Visit rockhur.st/2nCVADw to learn more about the Annual Performance Report and view individual reports for Rockhurst and peer institutions.